74 WHEAT 



wheat, and drop the same in an elevator that carries the 

 grain through a cylinder from which it comes out threshed 

 and ready for the sack. These machines are used in the 

 semiarid regions where grain seldom lodges, and where a 

 large acreage is devoted to wheat raising. 



On the medium-sized farms the wheat after being cut 

 and bound is put up in shocks and left in the field until 

 quite dry. In many localities the wheat is taken directly 

 from the shock to the threshing machine. In others, it is 

 hauled to a convenient place and stacked or taken directly 



Fig. 39. Wheat in shocks. 



to the barn and stowed away to await the threshing ma- 

 chine. If wheat is left for three or four weeks in the stack 

 or in the barn, it will be found in good condition to thresh 

 and will keep well in storage. After wheat is hauled from 

 the fields and stacked or stored away in barns it goes 

 through a sweating process. This lasts for two or three 

 weeks depending upon the ripeness and dryness of the 

 wheat when stored away. If threshed during the time it is 

 going through the sweat, the straw and grain will be found 

 to be damp. The straw is tough and will not run through 

 the machine readily and the wheat will heat and mold 



